Food delivery service Waitr set to begin Monday in Cape

An online food delivery service called Waitr will launch next week in Cape Girardeau.

Founded in Lake Charles, Louisiana, in 2015, Waitr is an on-demand restaurant platform designed to connect restaurants to customers. It will be available online, and also will be compatible with iPhones and Android devices.

In January, Waitr partnered with BiteSquad — which announced late last year it was bringing an on-demand food delivery service to Cape Girardeau. Combined, BiteSquad and Waitr have food delivery operations in approximately 250 cities in the U.S.

“We are one company,” said Waitr media relations director Dean Turcol. “Two brands, but one company. It’s the Waitr brand that we’re bringing to Cape Girardeau.”

A similar delivery company, carGO, launched in Cape Girardeau as a ride-hailing service in 2016 and expanded into food delivery in 2017. CarGO lists more than 50 partnering food establishments in and around Cape Girardeau.

“We’re currently partnering with restaurants in the Cape Girardeau market and are looking to launch this coming Monday with about 20 restaurants,” according to Tommy Angelle, who manages Waitr’s market startups.

Cape Girardeau will be Waitr’s second Missouri location, joining St. Joseph, where the service was launched in June.

“We have drivers hired and eventually we’re looking to hire over 100 drivers,” Angelle said. The service will operate seven days a week from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m., but the availability of certain items will depend on the hours of participating restaurants.

Food and beverage establishments in Cape Girardeau that are partnering with Waitr will be listed on the free Waitr app, which is downloadable through Apple iTunes and Google Play.

“What separates us from other delivery services is that we have a flat $5 fee on all orders with no minimum order size requirement,” Angelle said. The Waitr app can also be used to place carryout orders at participating restaurants with no service fee.

The service’s delivery zone will be within 10 miles of each restaurant. Angelle said additional restaurants will be added to the service in the coming months.

Although Waitr will start making deliveries Monday, a public “launch party” is scheduled for 5 to 8 p.m. Aug. 21 at 21 Taps, 36 N. Spanish St.

For more information or to download the Waitr app, visit www.waitrapp.com.

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